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Egypt
and Jordan a la Indiana Jones
A
Grand 12 days in Egypt and Jordan, Including Petra
Flying between Cairo and Upper Egypt
Indiana
Jones himself couldn't squeeze more adventure into such journey:
Cairo and the Pyramids, a cruise on the Nile, the fabled temples
and tombs of Luxor and Thebes, diving in the Red Sea, the mountains
of Sinai, and a trek to the mysterious ruins of Petra in Jordan.
DAY
1 - DEPARTURE - Sunday (
or Friday) -Weekly year round
(
click here if your prefer to start in Amman Jordan)
We take off aboard Lufthansa, Swiss , Air France, British Airways or
KLM from New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport. Handling
your own air fare ? Please click here . If you prefer to leave /
arrive a day earlier to rest in Cairo prior to starting the tour ,please
click here .Prefer
to handle your own air fare , please compare with this 14 day edition
DAY
2- CAIRO - Monday
Our Egypt-based local rep. greets you in bustling Cairo airport and
escorts you to your hotel . The
Egyptian visa may be issued for a limited number of nationalities
such as : for American, Australian , NZ, EU , Canadian, Mexican and
Japanese citizens. Passports must be valid for at least 6 month upon
arrival).
Please pay the visa fee $ 15 upon arrival in cash. After exiting the
terminal, our local representative will escort you (private vehicle)
to the hotel . After exiting the terminal, our local representative
will escort you (private vehicle) to the hotel
.
DAY
3 - CAIRO - Tuesday (BLD)
Your exploration of the ancient world begins today! First stop is the
Egyptian Museum, with its treasures of the ancient pharaohs: mummies,
statuary, precious stones and metals. We'll also stop at the Citadel
of Saladin and the Alabaster Mosque. Then it's on to Giza and the mysteries
of the Pyramids and Sphinx.
The
museum of the Royal Barge of Cheops The museum is built over the rectangular
pit that housed the Royal Barge for thousands of years , the wooden
boat was readied for the king's daily journey with the sun god, Ra .
Discovered in 1954, in a completely dismantled state, the 43-metre (140-foot)
cedar boat is a rare window on the Royal boats used by the kings of
Ancient Egypt.
We
are glad to include the entrance fee to get inside the Great Pyramid
, if interested , please read this first : The King's Chamber in the
Great Pyramid was not meant to be visited:
Getting to it is challenging, and once you enter, it is very difficult
to turn back. The stone passage is only wide enough for one person.
You must be in good physical condition, able to climb several flights
of stairs, bend double, crouch and duck-walk for short distances. The
King's Chamber itself is the world's most claustrophobic place, with
dim light and heavy, hot, oxygen-poor air. There is no ventilation.
If you are at all sensitive to claustrophobia or confinement, or if
you have any sort of respiratory condition, for your own safety and
the safety of others, you must not enter the pyramid because it is impossible
to remove a person or to bring aid to them quickly
Evening
complimentary dinner is included at a local home: Meet the locals,
you may wish to bring token gifts to exchange with the host family (
T shirt , small souvenirs of your home town): This
afternoon we'll venture where few ordinary visitors ever tread . . .
right into the homes of some of the people of Cairo ! You'll be invited
to a family dinner, and while you enjoy wholesome home-cooked specialties,
you'll learn about and appreciate the outlook, aspirations, and way
of life of your hosts. Be assured, as curious as you may be about your
new friends, they're sure to have questions about your own background.
Once the ice is broken, you'll enjoy a lively afternoon , and find that
you have more in common than you ever suspected. Of course, you may
enjoy a quiet evening with your travel companions, by letting us know
your preferences. Overnight
in Cairo
DAY
4 - Cairo / Aswan - Board your Nile Cruise - Wednesday (BLD)
After an early breakfast board your flight heading for Aswan , where
we settle you into your cabin on your Nile steamer. Complimentary
welcome fruit basket.
We'll visit the world famous Nubian Museum,
the enormous dams at Aswan, then board a launch on Lake Nasser to
visit the Temples of Philae, rescued from rising waters. In the evening
, your guide will call on you for a horse-drawn carriage ride throughout
Aswan and the waterfront.
DAY
5 - KOM OMBO -Thursday (BLD)
We cruise northward down the Nile today, at a stately pace,
disembarking for a visit to Kom Ombo, the twin temple dedicated to the
crocodile river god, Sobek. We'll also see Haroeris, the solar disk.
DAY
6 - EDFU and LUXOR- Friday (BLD)
Horse-drawn carriages or vans meet us at riverside to take us through
Edfu to the Temple of Horus, best-preserved in all of Egypt. Then we'll
continue beside the Nile to take in an array of ancient splendors: the
Valley of the Kings; the imposing tomb-temple of Queen Hatshepsut ;
and, back in Luxor, we tour the Great Temple at Karnak and the smaller
yet charming Temple of Amon. Evening Sound and Light show .
DAY 7 - SHARM EL SHEIKH - RED SEA Saturday (B)
Now that you've seen the best of the Egypt of the Pharaohs, our guides
escort you to the airport. You'll fly over the Sinai Peninsula and land
at historic Sharm El Sheik on the Red Sea. You're at the beach and free
to swim, or explore under the waters.
DAY
8 - SHARM EL SHEIK - Dinner with the Bedouins in Sinai -Sunday (BD)
Relax! Today is set aside as a strategic mid-journey break.
Spend some time in the sun, but don't miss your chance to snorkel or
dive under Red Sea waters for an array of coral and glittering tropical
fish. Lunch at the hotel. Evening dinner with the bedouins in Sinai
.
Day
9 - Saladin’s Castle and Pharaoh’s Island-Monday (
BL)
Breakfast at the hotel, lunch box will be prepared
by your chef and includes bottled water.
Just
off the Sinai along the northern reaches of the Gulf of Aqaba lies one
of the more curious and scenic locales in this part of the world.
The
rulers of the Nile might once have held sway over these rocks and sand
and water of Pharaoh’s Island (or Coral Island, or Geziret Faraoun).
More certain is that Crusaders established an outpost here, on the site
of a onetime Phoenician port, and erected a castle in 1115 A.D. to protect
pilgrims on the way to St. Catherine’s Monastery in the Sinai
wilderness. The island did double duty as a base from which to attack
Arab traders, which led to its capture by Saladin (or Salah El-Din).
The legendary Arab leader strengthened the fortifications, and his name
remains attached to the castle. Later, it was a Mameluke and Ottoman
outpost.
We’ll
have a treasured half-day opportunity to board a boat to visit this
rarely seen fortress island. We’ll motor northward from Sharm
El Sheikh, following the rocky coast, passing Bedouin travelers on camels,
and secluded beaches, with occasional sightings of desert foxes. At
Dahab or Nuweiba, we’ll embark for our short crossing to the island.
Once
ashore, we’ll wander through the precincts of the reconstructed
castle, with its courtyard, storerooms, galleys, and dining rooms, and
appreciate the natural harbor that made this such a coveted outpost.
And we’ll take in the unusual offshore vista of the breathtaking
azure waters of the Gulf, back dropped by the grandeur of the mountains
of Sinai and a cloudless sky.
Then,
at your option, you can don scuba or snorkeling gear for a close encounter
with the world-famous underwater life of coastal Sinai: corals, reefs,
and schools of fish in every gradation of the rainbow, before we return
to our lodgings at Sharm El Sheikh.
DAY
10 - Sharm - El Sheikh - PETRA - Tuesday
(BLD)
We'll fly to Amman ( non-stop, or via Cairo ) in Amman , our Jordan-based
representative waits to greet you. You'll drive north under a towering
ridge of mountains, and arrive at your hotel in Petra for the night.
Complimentary Jordanian visa fee (valid only for American , Australian,
NZ , Canadian, EU , Singaporean & Japanese citizens. Passports must
be valid for at least 6 month upon arrival). Drive south to Petra Lunch
is included enroute . Dinner is included at the hotel.
DAY 11 - PETRA- Wednesday (BD)
We'll spend the entire day at Petra, the stunning desert city hewn by
the Nabateans from solid cliffs of pink and violet sandstone. Petra
was known in the bible as Sela, and rediscovered only in 1812. You'll
feel like Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark as you penetrate
into the city through a narrow sandstone gorge, the Siq, and wander
among the Temple of the Winged Lion, tombs, Roman theater, and the imposing
Treasury.
In the evening we will call on you for a unique experience :
Dine as a local : The Petra Kitchen is a delightful way to round out
your Jordan travel experiences. Like any home kitchen, The Petra Kitchen
is a relaxed, informal atmosphere where you’ll gather to prepare
an evening meal, working alongside local women under the supervision
of our chef.
Each
evening meal includes soup, cold and hot mezza ( appetizers ) and salads,
and a main course—all typical Jordanian dishes. You will have
get an inside glimpse of the secrets behind the famous regional cuisine
of the Levant.
The
Petra Kitchen offers an evening of learning, fun and a very special
dining experience, with each dish gaining the special flavor of a reward
well-earned. Great care has been taken to make The Petra Kitchen a truly
Jordanian experience—right down to the furnishings, all crafted
in Jordan, the tableware, all produced by the Iraq al Amir Women’s
Co-operative, and the aprons and table linens, all hand-embroidered
by the Jordan River Foundation.
Tour
experience tonight includes the cuisine course, meal and all non-alcoholic
beverages as well as take-home recipes for all dishes prepared that
evening.
DAY
12 - DEPARTURE FOR HOME - Thursday (B)
Our staff escorts you to the airport of Amman for your flight home.
Or, you may choose to add one of our extensions,to Egypt, Sharm El Sheikh,
Syria, Greece or Turkey or even stop in Paris or London on the way back.
Compare with the 14day
version .
RATES
per person in USD
|
|
Deluxe
Hilton Level Hotels
M/S Monaco . M/S Mojito Nile Cruise, or similar |
First
Class
Oases Hotel or similar
M/S Nile Dream Nile Cruise
Hilton
Sharks Bay Sharm El Sheikh
(All inclusive), or similar |
| Triple |
US$
4570. |
US$
4225. |
| Double |
US$
4630. |
US$
4375. |
| Single |
US$
5770. |
US$
5460. |
- For
departures from most west coast cities, as well as Phoenix,, please
add $ 450 to the above rates. For DC , Boston , Chicago , Detroit
, Dallas-Fort Worth or Atlanta: please add $ 350.
- For
travel in May thru end of Sep , as well as Dec 20 - Jan 2 please note
that a $ 350 air-fare supplement is added to the above rates. This
doesn't apply when you handle your own air fare
-
Easter ( two weeks) , Christmas, New Year's Dec 15 - Jan 5 : 10 %
supplement will apply
Prices
include:
- International
air fares ( with tax) from New York to Cairo with return from Amman
. If / when you handle your own air fare please deduct $ 500 from
the listed rates.
- All
domestic flights within Egypt, economy class with tax .
-
Air-conditioned hotel accommodations with tax and service charges
- All
transfers in Egypt & Jordan.
-
Red Sea ferry ticket.
- Complimentary
welcome fruit basket on board the Nile Cruise.
- Bottled
water ( one per person) delivered daily to your cabin
- Bottled
water / tea / coffee with every meal on board the Nile Cruise.
-
Nile Cruise with all meals & shore excursions, cabins are always
outside with large panoramic windows.
- Sightseeing
with professional guide and entrance fees as indicated
- Meals
as indicated, with pre-set menu (B = Breakfast, L = Lunch, D = Dinner)
- Lonely
Planet guidebook to Jordan and Egypt .
- Jordanian
visa (valid only for American, Australian , NZ, EU & Japanese citizens.
Passports must be valid for at least 6 month upon arrival).
- Jordanian
departure tax.
Not included:
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